St. George's Episcopal Church

Goings On About the Parish...

January 2018

SUNDAY, JANUARY 28TH - St. George's Annual Parish Meeting took place in the Great Hall after the 10AM Mass. After the business meeting, election of Vestry members and Convention delegates, parishioners enjoyed a lunch of pork, red cabbage and potato pancakes as prepared by Administrative Assistant Bob McCloskey.

December 2017

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 24TH - For the 2nd year, St. George's offered a Children's Mass at 4PM on Christmas Eve day. Youths from church and the community participated, along with adults, in the telling of the birth of Jesus. Thanks to April Stromberg for recruiting all of the actors and actresses.

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 17TH - "the greening of the church" at St. George's is always a festive occasion for those participating. We wear old clothes and don't mind getting a little dusty as we hang the wreaths and garland, set up the manger scene, decorate around the church, the guys spend time with ladders, all to make our church welcome and even more beautiful during this joyous season.

November 2017

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 19TH - We had a dinner to cap our fall Stewarship Drive for 2018. It included a grilled chicken dinner with desserts. It was followed by a sing along with Jeff Wengrovious on the piano and many of our choir members joining Jeff in singing while grouped around the piano.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 4TH - our Great Hall at St. George's Church was filled
with An Evening of Dinner and Music, as some 100 people enjoyed a turkey
dinner with all the trimmings (prepared by our chef extraordinaire Kevin
Grace), followed by a concert of American Songbook Favorites performed by
soprano Roseanne Hargrave, accompanied by pianist Michael Clement. Music
director Andrew Krystopolski who chaired this church fundraiser, presented
$102 to the winner of the evening's 50/50 raffle, Peter Luczak.

October 2017

Saturday, October 28th - We participated in the Acolyte Festival of the Albany Diocese at the Cathedral. Fr. Matt was a guest speaker, and several of our finest represented St. George's including Steve Hartz, senior warden Chris Henry, Anna Thiessen, David Kennison, and JJ Moran.

October 2017

St. George's OUTREACH continues its mission to provide food for Schenectady's City Mission with enough for sizeable deliveries each month. A big thank you to parishioner Steve Hartz who took a selfie of himself and SICM employee Kory Baskin, Assistant Director of Dining Services for the Dining Center, during this month's delivery.

Sunday, October 8th - Some wore fur, some were leashed, others were carried in crates....all gathered together harmoniously at 3 o'clock at the west doors of St. George's for the Annual Pet Blessing in honor of St. Francis of Assisi. Fr. Matt presided over this very special ceremony for "all God's creatures, big and small"....and their families.

September 2017

Sunday, September 17 - "Start Up Sunday" is a day when Georgians sign up for various ministries for the year and enjoy a delicious potluck as well!

Sunday, September 9 - Mass on the Grass was an inventive new way to celebrate the joys of being an Episcopalian. It was a full Mass with a full choir and approximately 48 congregants.

Saturday, September 9 - Busy Georgians worked St. George's Café (behind the scenes and the front lines) during the Annual Stockade Art Show. Inside the church were volunteer guides and constant organ recitals.

August 2017

Wednesday, August 24 - 14 budding artists showed up at Canvas, Corks & Forks in Schenectady for a Georgian fundraiser. Fun for all was the theme of the evening.

July 2017

On July 21, 2017, Acting United States Attorney Grant Jaquith (and St. George's Church member) spoke to the children at the Steinmetz Summer Day Camp conducted by Schenectady Inner City Ministry as part of their “career week.” Acting U.S. Attorney Jaquith described the work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and noted that our nation depends on a legal system that provides a fair way to resolve problems peacefully. The children spoke about what they wanted to do when they grew up, and created a “me page” using each of the letters of their first names to begin a positive word or phrase that described them. Mr. Jaquith emphasized the importance of education to achieving career goals and making good decisions, and urged the children to take advantage of the special gift of teachers and counselors who are dedicated to helping them learn and grow.

Colton Jaquith, Grant Jaquith's son, is shown in the bottom right of the photo with a child on his lap. St. George's sponsors summer interns; Colton is this year's intern.

Saturday, July 22nd - the date of the Annual Pearson Parish Picnic on Sacandaga Lake was a fun-filled time for all participants. Great food, great fun, a great get-together in the lovely community of Pleasant Lake. Many thanks to Jon and Joan for once again hosting another memorable day at their lakeside camp.

Sunday, July 16th - Georgians came together at 3PM in our rectory's backyard on a hot, humid Sunday to honor our sexton, Gerald Cooper, who is retiring and moving back to Louisiana with Penny to be with family. It was an afternoon of good conversation, good fellowship, and good food....and a wonderful tribute to a man who has been an integral part of our St. George's family for twelve years. You will be missed, Gerald....but never forgotten!

June 2017

SUNDAY, JUNE 11TH - Evensong for Trinity Sunday was celebrated at St.
George's by Fr. Matt Stromberg, officiant; David Kennison, MC/lector, and Andrew Krystopolski, organist/choirmaster, with his full St. Cecilia Choir and Friends. Kudos to all participants for a memorable hour.

June 9-10 - In conjunction with the Stockade Area Sidewalk Sale, St.
George's held a very successful 2-day Rummage Sale offering clothing, household goods, and so much more! Thanks to chairman Rick Forshaw and those Georgians who gave of their time, talent, and worked before, during and after the sale.

June 9-10-11 - The 149th Convention of the Diocese of Albany was again celebrated at the Camp of the Woods. Representing St. George's were (L-R) Jon Pearson, Rich Unger, Chris Henry, Fr. Matt Stromberg, and (missing from picture) photographer Bob Paska. Congratulations to Fr. Matt for being elected to The Great Chapter of the Cathedral.

May 2017

On Sunday, May 21st....parishioners and the St. Cecilia Choir gathered together in the Memorial Garden after Mass for special blessings on what is known as Rogation Day.

On Wednesday, May 10th....Fr. Matt and Andrew offered prayers and blessings
at various local fire stations in honor of St. Florian, the patron saint of
firefighters.

April 2017

SUNDAY, APRIL 30TH - Our festive St. George's Day included the Kirkin' O the Tartans of the St. Andrew's Society, representatives of St. George's Lodge
#6 of Free & Accepted Masons, and the Schenectady Pipe Band. Mass began at 10AM in the church and ended with a parade around the Stockade Area.

SUNDAY, APRIL 16TH - "Easter Sunday" Mass at 9AM (Rite I) and 11:15AM (Rite
II) - the Sunday of the Resurrection was a joyous time for those attending and those serving on the altar.

SATURDAY, APRIL 15TH - "Holy Saturday" Mass at 7PM - the congregation gathered outside the west doors for The First Mass of Easter including the Kindling of the News Fire. Mass continued indoors with 6 readings from Scripture.

THURSDAY, APRIL 13TH - "Maundy Thursday" Mass at 7PM - The Liturgy of the Lord's Supper included the washing of feet, music director Andrew Krystopolski directing the full choir doing the stripping of the altar, followed by the all-night vigil in the Lady Chapel.

FRIDAY, APRIL 14TH - "Good Friday" Mass at 12 Noon - The Liturgy of Our Lord's Passion and Death, and the solemnity of The Veneration of the Cross.

SUNDAY, APRIL 9TH - Palm Sunday began in the Great Hall with hymns from the
St. Cecilia Choir and The Liturgy of Palms, including the Gospel reading,
followed by a parish-wide procession into St. George's Church for the
continuation of the Mass and reading of The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ
according to Matthew.

SUNDAY, APRIL 2ND - Every Sunday in Lent we have been having dinners with discussion of The Seven Deadly Sins and the Seven Lively Virtues. Each week we see a 10 minute video on the sin and the virtue of the week, then we discuss the topic for 45 minutes or so. Attendance has varied from 10 to 19.

February 2017

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28TH - St. George's Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, sponsored by the St. Cecilia Choir, was good food, good conversation, and good music. In other words, "a good time was had by all."

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 19 - Moms, a couple of Dads, and a few children came to our rescheduled Valentine's Tea ([postponed from last week due to thesnowstorm.) There were tablesful of sweets, tea sandwiches, fruit, gluten-free items; plenty of tea, soda, juice and water to quench everyone's thirst; toys and crafts for the kids; and socializing for the adults. A nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon, thanks to our rector's wife, April Stromberg.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2017 - Fr. Matt Stromberg participated in the diocesan Parish Leadership Conference at the Spiritual Life Center. Rich Unger, who
accompanied Fr. Matt, took this picture.

January 2017

SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 2017 - Suzy & Rich Unger and Jean Greenspan attended
the Women's March in Washington, DC along with millions of others around the
world (an estimated 500,000 marched in DC alone.) They were joined by Suzy
and Rich's daughter and son-in-law, Suzy's sister and sister-in-law and
friends. The march was exhilarating; the mood was positive; the
demonstrators were polite and friendly. There was a sign reading: "Episcopal Women marching for the dignity of every human being." Our group
was proud to be part of such a positive expression of free speech.

JANUARY 22, 2017 - The Annual Parish Meeting of St. George's Church got
underway after the 9AM Mass on Sunday in the Great Hall. The opening prayer by Fr. Matthew Stromberg was followed by distribution of a packet of reports from various Vestry members and church leaders; election of candidates to the Vestry; a gift to outgoing Junior Warden Richard Forshaw for 5 years of extraordinary service; a State of the Parish report by Senior Warden Christopher Henry; a Financial Report by Treasurer Jonathan Pearson; and a sumptuous breakfast prepared by our in-house chef Kevin Grace.

December 2016

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18TH - Georgians attending the 9AM and 11:15AM Masses stayed around to help prepare the Greening of St. George's (inside and outside) and the Great Hall. It's an annual tradition where parishioners come together, work together, and the end result is a more beautiful church and campus for the holiday season.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 17TH - As part of our holiday Outreach, 18 Georgians -
including Nancy and Johnnie Angus - signed up for the Salvation Army Bell
Ringing from 9AM to 7PM. St. George's was stationed in front of Encore Shoe
Department at the ViaPort Mall in Rotterdam. Jon Pearson coordinated this event.

November 2016

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30TH - The Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle was celebrated with a Mass at 7PM at St. George's with special guests and bagpipers from the Society of St. Andrew, the local Scottish fraternity.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 1ST - It became a "spectator sport" as a few parishioners and mostly Stockade neighbors watched the removal of some badly rotted trees from the front yard at St. George's. Although it looks barren now, new trees will be planted to replace the old.

October 2016

Friday, October 28th - the Institution and Induction of the 19th Rector of St. George's, Fr. Matthew Stromberg, took place at 7PM in the church with a catered reception for 200 following in the Great Hall. The Right Reverend William H. Love, Bishop of Albany, presided over the glorious event that was attended by parishioners, Stockade neighbors, friends, family and visiting clergy. From start to finish, it was an evening to remember.

Saturday, October 15th - After 18 & 1/2 years as Administrative Assistant at St. George's, our beloved Donna Vrooman decided to retire to devote time to her family. The Vestry hosted a Reception in her honor from 4-6PM in the Shaw Lounge. Parishioners were invited and gave Donna a "proper send-off." They came with love and sadness to say "goodbye" to this very special woman who has been our "office staple" for almost two decades. Donna, you will be missed.

October 9th - The Annual Pet Blessing, in honor of St. Francis of Assissi, took place on Sunday, October 9th at 2 o'clock at St. George's. Dogs (big and small), a cat or two, and 2 pigeons were accompanied by their owners.
Parishioners, neighbors and the community-at-large gathered at the west doors for the lovely service, liturgy, hymns, and - of course - the blessing. Fr. Matt Stromberg was accompanied by Andrew Krystopolski on the accordion.

September 2016

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 19TH - St. George's Ministry Fair/Start-Up Sunday started up after the 9AM Mass and before the 11:15AM Mass. Fr. Matt Stromberg opened the event with a prayer; Stewardship chairman Jeff Wengrovius was emcee.
Ministry boards were set up in the Great Hall, and will remain there for several weeks, with information about the ministries and sign-up sheets for those interested in volunteering. Between "sweets 'n savories," various chairpersons talked briefly about their ministries.

SEPTEMBER 2016 - SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 - Because of a weather forecast predicting rain (that never happened), the Stockade Art Show scheduled for Saturday was cancelled and re-scheduled for Sunday. That meant St. George's Café, offering food and drink for art show browsers and buyers, would not open as planned. It cannot be said that Georgians aren't resilient, however, and while our Café was "tabled" (pun intended!), it all came together deliciously the next day. The sun shone. The winds blew tablecloths off the tables. The sound of easels falling over in the background. Yet a good time was had by all....as evident with these pictures. St. George's Church was open for tours, and organ music with guest organists played throughout the afternoon.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 - Andrew Krystoposlski and the St. Cecilia Choir of St. George's Church were supposed to perform for residents of the Kingsway Community at 2PM. But because of the Stockade Art Show cancellation on Saturday (re-scheduled for Sunday), many of the singers were committed to working at St. George's Café. Andrew to the rescue! He treated the Kingsway Community to a half-hour of accordion and piano music, from favorite hymns to rousing polka music!

August 2016

August 7th - Fr. Matthew Stromberg celebrated his first Sunday at St.
George's Church, the church's 19th rector. Between the two Masses (9AM and 11:15AM), he and his family (wife April, daughter Helen, son Isaac) were feted at a Georgian brunch in the Great Hall. Conversation and food flowed freely.

July 2016

JULY 2016 - Parishioner/volunteer David Kennison spent the month refurbishing the lantern adjacent to the parking lot steps. Old, decrepit and crumbling, parts had already fallen to the ground, and the remaining bits were shaky at best. It was taken down, disassembled and the old paint removed (some by sandblasting, some by heat.) This uncovered a major reason for the decay - 5 different types of metal were used in construction, and interaction between the metals accelerated the corrosion. After much frustration and many unforeseen problems, this project was done!

June 2016

JUNE 10 & 11 - The 148th Annual Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany was held at Camp of the Woods, Speculator, NY. Representatives from St. George's were Jon Pearson, Jeff Wengrovius, Chris Henry and Bob Paska.

May 2016

SUNDAY, MAY 30th - Corpus Christi, emphasizing the joy of the institution of the Eucharist, was celebrated on the last Sunday in May with the Reverend Richard Lehmann and Deacon Howard Smith. The Holy Mass concluded with a procession and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament as displayed in the Monstrance.

St. George's float in this year's Niska-Day Parade, a replica of the cover of a Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass CD, won 1st prize! Congratulations to the hard-working Georgians who volunteered for this project including the Forshaws, the Weakleys, the Ungers, and the Jaquiths (to name just a few of the families)....and, of course, our own Herb Alpert "impersonator," Chris Henry.

April 2016

SUNDAY, APRIL 24TH - A cadre of clergy, acolytes, St. Andrew's Society, the Schenectady Pipe Band, music director Andrew Krystopolski with his St. Cecilia Choir and guest trumpeters and - of course -Georgians, family, friends and neighbors celebrated St. George's Day with a beautiful combined Mass at 10AM, followed by the annual parade around the Stockade, and ended in the Great Hall with a sumptuous buffet and camaraderie for all.

March 2016

SATURDAY, MARCH 26th - The first mass of Easter took place on Holy Saturday, starting at 7PM with the kindling of the new fire and the blessing of the Paschal Candle in front of the west doors of the church. Congregants then processed into the church for the full mass which was followed by a Georgian reception in the Great Hall.

THURSDAY, MARCH 24TH - A solemn high mass on Maundy Thursday included washing of the feet (with 12 volunteers to represent the 12 apostles), the Passion narrated by Jon Pearson, and an all-night vigil in the Lady Chapel.

FRIDAY, MARCH 25th - The mass, a solemn Liturgy of our Lord's Passion and Death, at 12 noon on Good Friday included the Veneration of the Cross.

MARCH 20 - Palm Sunday at St. George's began in the Great Hall, palms were blessed and distributed by celebrant The Reverend Richard B. Lehmann, then the choir and parishioners processed into the church for the remainder of the Mass, which included the reading of The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ.

FEBRUARY-MARCH 2016 - Every Saturday morning at 10:30 during Lent, following Morning Prayer at 10, David Kennison leads parishioners and friends of St.
George's in Stations of the Cross. This very powerful aspect of the days leading up to Easter should be on everyone's preparation for the death and resurrection of Christ. Remember "by his Cross are we saved."

February 2016

Tuesday, February 2nd - St. George's Assisted Living Ministry group selfie picture taken in the elevator at Capital Living Nursing Home.

January 2016

Sunday, January 31st - St. George’s Church did Choral Evensong in anticipation of The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. The Evensong, sung by the St. Cecilia Choir and New York Catholic Chorale, included Preces and Responses from the St. James Service by R. Aarons, Evening Canticles by Thomas Tallis, an anthem, “Christ, whose glory fills the skies” by Harold Darke, as well as congregational hymns, prayers and scripture.

Sunday, January 24th - the Annual Meeting of St. George's Church was held in The Great Hall. Opening prayer was given by the Reverend Paul Hunter. Senior Warden Christopher Henry presided over the meeting which included vestry elections, financial report, and a question & answer session on our rector search process. The meeting adjourned after a few words from our Music Director Andrew Krystopolski. A pot luck followed the business meeting.

Saint George's Schenectady
Colonial Anglican Parish of the Episcopal Church
Located in the Heart of the Stockade
30 North Ferry Street, Schenectady, New York